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Monday, March 9, 2009

I tend to goof off a lot. It's a habit I've picked up since I lost my day job three years ago. And it's sooooo easy to goof off on the computer for hours and hours on end.

Lately, I've been spending a lot of time surfing the Web looking at neat web sites. Yes, it's time to do a revamp. (In fact, probably past time.) I'm trying to get a fix on what I like. And it turns out what I like is VERY EXPENSIVE--and do I want to spend that kind of money?

The truth is, making the New York Times bestsellers list does not mean you automatically have made a lot of money. The Times list is a reflection of sales for a short period of time. When your book is fresh off the press, it might sell like hotcakes for the first couple of weeks -- then it dribbles off. And, authors often don't see any money for six to nine months AFTER the book shows up on such a list. Why? Because authors only get paid twice a year.

It's true. Publishers issue royalty statements in March and September. In September, they account for sales from January 1st until June 30th. In March, they account for sales from July 1st until December 31st. Let me tell you, the months between payments can be pretty damn L-O-N-G. And, they have a clause called "reserves against returns." That means there'll be a whole lot of books sitting on shelves that haven't been bought yet. Until the publisher gets paid for them -- the author doesn't get paid. (And then you have to worry about the books themselves getting stripped. Instead of returning books to the publisher, stores strip off the front covers and return them for credit -- tossing the books themselves into the nearest Dumpster.)

But, as usual, I digress.

Since the Jeff Resnick series is in limbo until the next book is contracted, that site will pretty much stay stagnant. The Lorna site badly needs an upgrade. But I'm not sure what I want. (Okay, I do -- but as mentioned above, no got those kind 'o bucks.)

The girly side of me is pushing for all kinds of neat stuff. Roses, and chocolates, and cool vintage graphics. Too bad Tricia isn't girly. Ah, but I've got more up my sleeve than just a hairy arm. (More on that in another post.)

I guess for the meanwhile I'll just keep looking around and collecting ideas and images. (And feel very impatient.)